Section I - Catholicism Babylon Mystery Religion by Ralph Woodrow

Transcription

1 Comparative Religions Page 1 Section I - Catholicism Babylon Mystery Religion by Ralph Woodrow CHAPTER ONE Babylon Source of False Religion The MYSTERY RELIGION of Babylon has been symbolically described in the last book of the bible as an ill-famed woman. In vision, the Apostle John saw a woman arrayed in purple and scarlet color, and decked with gold and precious stones and pearls, having a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and filthiness of her fornication: and upon her forehead was a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH (Revelation 17:1-6). Now what is the meaning of this unusual vision that was given to John? It is well known that in the symbolic language of the Bible, a woman pictures a church. The true church, for example, is likened to a bride, a chaste virgin, a woman without spot or blemish (Ephesians 5:27; Rev. 19:7, 8). But in striking contrast to the true church, the woman of our text is spoken of as an unclean woman, a defiled woman, or to use the Bible wording which is sometimes very plain she is a whore. It is evident then that the church system here described is a counterfeit system a defiled and fallen church! In big capital letters, the Bible calls her: MYSTERY BABYLON. When John was inspired to write the Revelation, Babylon as a city had already been destroyed and left in ruins. It has remained a desolate waste ever since inhabited only by wild animals even as the prophets foretold. (Isaiah 13:19-22; Jeremiah 51:62). But though the city of Babylon was destroyed, we shall see that the religion of Babylon continued on and was well represented in many nations of the world. And since John was speaking of a church, a religion, under the symbol of a woman name Babylon, it is evident that the reference is to Babylonish religion. But just what was the religion of ancient Babylon? How did it all begin? And what significance does it hold in modern times? Let us turn the pages of time back to the period shortly after the Flood. In those days, men began to migrate from the east and it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there (Genesis 11:2). It was in this land of Shinar that the city of Babylon was built and this land became known as Babylonia or later as Mesopotamia. Here the Euphrates and the Tigris rivers had built up rich deposits of earth that could produce crops in abundance. But there were certain disadvantages here, which the people faced. The land was overrun with wild animals, which were a constant threat to the safety and peace of the inhabitants. (Cp. Exodus 23:29, 30). Obviously anyone who could successfully provide protection from these wild beasts would receive great acclaim from the people. And so at this point, a large powerfully built man by the name of Nimrod appeared on the scene. He became famous as a mighty HUNTER against the wild animals. The Bible tells us: And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a MIGHTY ONE in the earth. He was a MIGHTY HUNTER before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD (Genesis 10:8, 9). Now there is a very significant meaning in these verses a meaning that is seldom noticed: It was Nimrod s success as a mighty hunter that caused him to become famous among those primitive people. As the scripture declares, he became a mighty one in the earth a famous leader in worldly affairs. Nimrod was so powerful, and the impression which his achievements made upon the minds of men so great, that the East is filled even to the present time with traditions of his extraordinary career. 1 Gaining this prestige among the people, Nimrod devised a better means of protection. Instead of constantly fighting the wild beasts, why not organize the people into cities and surround them with walls of protection? Then why not organize these cities into a KINGDOM and appoint a king to rule over them? Evidently this was the thinking of Nimrod, for the Bible tells us that he organized such a kingdom! And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar (Genesis 10:10). And so the kingdom of Nimrod became established and is the first kingdom mentioned in the Bible. All of these advances made by Nimrod might have been well and good, but Nimrod was an ungodly ruler. The scripture says that he was a mighty one. Not only does this indicate that he became famous and politically powerful, but the expression also has a hostile meaning. The expression comes from the Hebrew word gibor which means TYRANT; while the name Nimrod means, let us rebel. As THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA SAYS, Nimrod was he who made all the people rebellious against God. 2 This same rebellious nature of Nimrod may also be seen from the expression that he was a mighty hunter BEFORE the Lord. The word before, in this instance, also carries a hostile meaning. In other words, Nimrod set himself up BEFORE God, the word before being the translation of a Hebrew word meaning AGAINST the LORD. 3 But not only was Nimrod against the true God, he was also a priest of devil worship and of heathenism of the worse kind, as we shall see. Then finally, Nimrod, the priest-king of Babylon, died. According to the old stories, his body was cut into pieces, burnt, and the pieces were sent to various areas. Similar practices are mentioned even in the Bible (Judges 19:29; I Sam- 1 Ancient History in Bible Light, p.54 2 Volume 9, p See Strong s Concordance; cp. Num. 16:2; I Chronicles 14:8; II Chronicles 15:10

2 Comparative Religions Page 2 uel 11:7). The death of Nimrod was greatly mourned by the people of Babylon. But though Nimrod had died, the Babylonian religion of which he played a prominent part, continued on and developed further under the leadership of his wife. After Nimrod s death, his wife, Queen Semiramis, claimed that she was now the Sun-god. And later, when this adulterous and idolatrous woman gave birth to an illegitimate son, she claimed that this son, Tammuz by name, was Nimrod reborn. Now the queen-mother of Tammuz had no doubt heard the prophecy of the coming Messiah to be born of a woman, for this truth was known from the earliest times (See Genesis 3:15). Satan had first seduced a woman, Eve; but later through a woman was to some the savior our Lord Jesus Christ. Satan, the great counterfeiter, also knew much about the Divine Plan. Thus, he began to set up counterfeits of the true plan centuries before Jesus came. Queen Semiramis, as an instrument in Satan s hands, claimed that her son was supernaturally conceived and that he was the promised seed, the savior. However, not only was the child worshipped, but the woman, the MOTHER, was also worshipped as much (or more) than the son! As we will see in the pages that follow, Nimrod, Semiramis, and Tammuz, were used as puppets in Satan s hand to produce false religion though often appearing as the true! and this corrupt system filled the world. Much of the Babylonian worship was carried on through mysterious symbols thus it was a Mystery religion. The golden calf, for example, was a symbol of Tammuz, son of the Sun-god. Since Nimrod was believed to be the Sun-god or Baal, fire was considered as his earthly representation. Thus, as we shall see, candles and ritual fires were lighted in his honor. In other forms, Nimrod was symbolized by sun symbols, fish, trees, pillars, and animals. Centuries later, Paul gave a description, which perfectly fits the course that, the people of Babylon followed: When they knew God, they glorified him not as God... but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an IMAGE made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things... they changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the CREATURE more than the CREATOR... for this cause God gave them up unto vile affections (Romans 1:21-26). This system of idolatry spread from Babylon to the nations, for it was from this location that men were scattered over the face of the earth (Genesis 11:9). As they went from Babylon, they took their worship of the Babylonian family and its various mystery symbols with them. And so, to this day, we find evidence of the religion of Babylon in one form or another in all the false religions of earth! Truly Babylon was the Mother the originator of false religion and the idolatry that has spread throughout the earth. As the scriptures declare, all nations drank from her cup of false doctrine. (Jeremiah 51:7; Revelation 18:3). In addition to the scriptural proof that Babylon was the Mother, the source of pagan religion, we also have the testimony of noted historians. Herodotus, the world traveler and historian of antiquity, for example, witnessed the Mystery religion and its rites in numerous countries and mentions how Babylon was the primeval source from which ALL systems of idolatry flowed. 1 Bunsen says that the religious system of Egypt was derived from Asia, and the primitive empire in Babel. In his noted work entitled NINEVEH AND ITS REMAINS, Layard declares that we have the united testimony of sacred and profane history that idolatry originated in the area of Babylonia the most ancient of religious systems. 2 Now when Rome became a world empire, it is a known fact that she assimilated into her system the gods and religions from the various pagan countries over which she ruled. 3 And since Babylon was the source of the paganism of these countries, we can see how the early religion of pagan Rome was but the Babylonish worship that had developed into various forms and under different names in the countries to which it had gone. Bearing this in mind, we notice that it was during this time when Rome ruled the world, that the true savior, Jesus Christ, was born, lived among men, died, and rose again. He then ascended into heaven, sent back the Holy Spirit, and the New Testament church was established in the earth. And what glorious days they were! One only has to read the book of Acts to see how much God blessed his people in those days. Multitudes were added to the church the true church. Great signs and wonders were performed as God confirmed his word with signs following. True Christianity, anointed by the Holy Spirit, swept the world like a prairie fire. It encircled the mountains and crossed the oceans. It made kings to tremble and tyrants to fear. It was said of those early Christians that they had turned the world upside down! -- so powerful was their message and spirit. Before too many years had passed, however, men began to set themselves up as lords over God s people in place of the Holy Spirit. Instead of conquering by spiritual means and by truth as in the early days men began to substitute their ideas and their methods. Attempts to merge paganism into Christianity were being made even in the days when our New Testament was being written, for Paul mentioned that the MYSTERY of iniquity was already beginning to work. He warned that there would come a falling away and that many would depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils the counterfeit doctrines of the pagans! By the time that Jude wrote the book that bears his name, it was Necessary for him to exhort the people to earnestly contend for THE faith that was ONCE delivered unto the saints, for certain men had crept in and were attempting to substitute things that were not a part of the early true faith of Christ and the Apostles. (Jude 1:3, 4). Christianity came face to face with the Babylonian paganism in its various forms that had been established in the Roman Empire. The early Christians refused to have anything to do with its customs and beliefs. Much persecution resulted. Many Christians were falsely accused, thrown to the lions, burned at the stake, and in other ways tortured and martyred. But then great changes began to be made. The Emperor of Rome professed conversion. Imperial orders went forth throughout the empire that persecutions should cease. Bishops were given high honors. The church began to receive worldly recognition and power. But for all of this, a great price had to be paid! 1 Herodotus History, Bk. 2, p Volume 2, p The Legacy of Rome, p.245

3 Comparative Religions Page 3 Many compromises were made with paganism. Instead of the church being separate from the world, it became a part of this world system. The Emperor, showing favor, demanded a place of leadership in the church; for in paganism, emperors were believed to be gods. From here on, wholesale mixtures of paganism into Christianity were made, as all historians know. As shocking as it may sound, the very paganism that originated in Babylon and spread to the nations, was now thoroughly mixed with Christianity, especially at Rome. This MIXTURE produced what is known today as the ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH as (we believe) the pages, which follow, will prove. It is not our intention to treat lightly or to ridicule any one whose beliefs we may here disagree with. Instead, it is our desire that this book would be a call to all sincere people regardless of church affiliation to forsake Babylonish doctrines and concepts and turn to the Bible and to THE faith that was ONCE delivered to the saints. CHAPTER TWO Mother and Child Worship One of the most outstanding examples of how Babylonian paganism has continued to our day may be seen in the way the Romish church invented Mary worship to replace the ancient worship of the Mother Goddess of Babylon. As we mentioned in Chapter One, after the death of Nimrod, his adulterous wife gave birth to a child who she claimed was supernaturally conceived. She taught that he was a god-child; that he was Nimrod, their leader, reborn; that she and her child were divine. 1 This story was widely known in ancient Babylon and developed into a well established worship the worship of the Mother and the Child. Numerous monuments of Babylon show the Goddess Mother Semiramis with her child Tammuz in her arms. 2 Now when the people of Babylon were scattered to the various parts of the earth, they carried the worship of the Divine Mother and her god-child with them. This explains why it is that all nations in ancient times worshipped a divine Mother and the god-child in one form or another centuries before the true savior, our Lord Jesus, was born into this world! In the various countries where this worship spread, the Mother and Child were called by different names, due to the dividing of the languages at Babel, but the basic story remained the same. Among the Chinese, the Mother Goddess was called Shingmoo or the Holy Mother. She is pictured with child in arms and rays of glory around her head. 3 The ancient Germans worshipped the Virgin Hertha with child in arms. The Scandinavians called her Disa who was also pictured with a child. The Etruscans called her Nutria and among the Druids, the Virgo-Paritura was worshipped as the Mother of God. 4 In India, she was known as Indrani, who was also represented with child in arms. The Babylonian Mother was known as Aphrodite or Ceres to the Greeks; Nana, to the Sumerians; and as Venus or Fortuna to her devotees in the olden days of Rome, and her child was known as Jupiter. 5 For ages, Isi, the Great Goddess and her child Iswara, have been worshipped in India where great temples were erected for their worship. 6 In Asia, the Mother was known as Cybele and child as Deoius. But regardless of her name or place, says one writer, she was the wife of Baal, the virgin queen of heaven, who bore fruit although she never conceived. 7 When the children of Israel fell into apostasy, they too were defiled with this Mother-Goddess worship. As we read in Judges 2:13, They forsook the LORD, and served Baal and Ashtaroth. Ashtaroth or Ashtoreth was the name by which the Goddess was known to the children of Israel. It is pitiful to think that even those who had known the true god would depart from Him and worship the heathen Mother. But this is exactly what they did. 8 One of the titles by which the Goddess was known among the Israelites was the queen of heaven, as we read in Jeremiah 44: The prophet Jeremiah rebuked them for worshipping her, but they rebelled against his warning and thus brought upon themselves swift destruction from the hand of God! In Ephesus, the Great Mother was known as Diana. The temple dedicated to her in that city was one of the Seven Wonders of the ancient world! And not only at Ephesus, but throughout all Asia and the world was the Mother-goddess worshipped (Acts 19:27). In Egypt, the Babylonian Mother was known as Isis and her child as Horus. Nothing is more common on the religious monuments of Egypt than the infant Horus seated on the lap of his mother. The worship of the Mother and Child was also known in England in olden times, for in 1747, a religious monument was found at Oxford, of pagan origin, on which is exhibited a female nursing an infant. Thus we see, says the historian, that the Virgin and child were worshipped in pagan times from China to Britain... and even in Mexico the Mother and child were worshipped. 9 This false worship, having spread from Babylon to the various nations, in different names and forms, finally became established at Rome and throughout the Roman Empire. Says a noted writer of this period: The worship of the Great Mother... was 1 Two Babylons, p Encyclopedia of Religions, Volume 2, p The Heathen Religion, p Bible Myths, p Two Babylons, p.20 6 Ibid, p Strange Sects and Curious Cults, p.12 8 Judges 10:6; I Samuel 7:3, 4; 12:10; I Kings 11:5; II Kings 23:13 9 Bible Myths, p. 334

4 Comparative Religions Page 4 very popular under the Roman Empire. Inscriptions prove that the two (the Mother and the Child) received divine honors... not only in Italy and especially at Rome, but also in the provinces, particularly in Africa, Spain, Portugal, France, Germany, and Bulgaria. 1 Now it was during this period when the worship of the Divine Mother was very prominent that the savior, our Lord Jesus Christ, founded the true New Testament church. And what a glorious church it was in those early days! By the third and fourth centuries, however, what was known as the church greatly departed from the original faith, falling into that great apostasy about which the apostles had warned. When this falling away came, much paganism was mixed with Christianity. Unconverted pagans were taken into the professing church and in numerous instances were allowed to continue many of their pagan rites and customs usually with a few reservations or changes to make these pagan beliefs appear more similar to some Christian doctrine. One of the best examples of such a carry over from paganism may be seen in the way the professing church allowed the pagans to continue their worship of the Great Mother only in a slightly different form and with a new name! You see, many pagans had been drawn to Christianity, but so strong in their mind was the adoration for the Mother-goddess, that they did not want to forsake her. Compromising church leaders saw that if they could find some similarity in Christianity with the Mother-goddess worship of the pagans, they could increase their numbers by bringing many pagans into their fold. But who could they use to replace the Great Mother of paganism? Of course Mary, the Mother of Jesus was the most logical person for them to choose. Why then couldn t they allow the pagans to continue their prayers and devotion to the Goddess, but call her by the name of Mary instead of the former names by which she was known? This would give the pagan worship of the Mother the appearance of Christianity, and in this way, both sides could be pleased as it were and drawn into the Romish system. And this is exactly what happened! Little by little, the worship and doctrines that had been associated with the pagan Mother came to be applied to Mary. Thus the pagan worship of the Mother continued hiding now right within the professing church! It is evident that this Mary worship was not the worship of Mary at all, but a continuation of the old pagan worship of the pagan Mother. For while Mary, the mother of Jesus, was a fine, dedicated, and godly woman especially chosen to bear the body of our savior yet never was she considered as a DIVINE person or a goddess by the early true church. None of the Apostles or even the Lord Jesus himself ever hinted at the idea of Mary worship. As the ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA states, during the first centuries of the church, no emphasis was placed upon Mary whatsoever. 2 It was not until the time of Constantine the early part of the fourth century that anyone began to look to Mary as a goddess. But even at this period, such worship was frowned upon by the church, as is evident by the words of Epiphanius who denounced certain women of Thrace, Arabia, and elsewhere, for worshipping Mary as an actual goddess and offering cakes at her shrine. Yet, within just a few more years, Mary worship was not only condoned by what is known today as the Catholic Church but it became one of her main doctrines as it is to this day. Since Rome had long been a center for the worship of the Goddess of paganism, we need not be surprised that this was one of the first places that Mary worship became established within the Church, a fact that plainly reveals that Mary worship was the direct result of pagan influence! Another city where the ancient pagan Mother worship was very popular was Ephesus; and here too, attempts were made to merge it into Christianity. In Ephesus, from the primitive times, the Mother Goddess had been called Diana (Acts 19). Here, the pagans had worshipped her as the goddess of Virginity and Motherhood. 3 She was said to represent the generative powers of nature and so was pictured with many breasts. A tower shaped crown, a symbol of the tower of Babel, adorned her head. When beliefs are held by a people for centuries, they are not easily forsaken. So church leaders at Ephesus when the falling away came also reasoned that if they would let the pagans continue their old worship of the Great Mother, they could bring them into the church. So here too, at Ephesus, the Mother Goddess worship was mixed into Christianity, the name of Mary being substituted in the place of the name Diana. The pagans continued to pray to the Mother Goddess, they kept their idols of her, and the professing church allowed them to worship her along with Christ. But such a mixture was not God s way of gaining converts! When Paul had come to Ephesus in earlier days, no compromise was made with paganism. People were truly converted in those days and destroyed their idols of the Mother-goddess (Acts 19:24-27). How tragic that this church in later centuries compromised and even adopted the abominable Mother-goddess worship hiding it under a cloak of professing Christianity! And finally, when the worship of Mary was made an official doctrine of the Catholic church in 431 AD, in what city did it take place? It was at the Council of Ephesus the city of the pagan Mother Diana! The pagan influence in such a decision is apparent. Another stronghold for the worship of the Great Mother of heathenism was Alexandria, Egypt. Here she was known by the name Isis. As Christianity spread to Alexandria, similar compromises were made as had been made at Ephesus and Rome. The pagan Mother worship was skillfully injected into Christianity by the church theologians of this city. Now the very fact that it was in cities like Alexandria, Ephesus, and Rome, where the worship of the pagan Mother was first mixed into Christian worship, clearly shows how such was the direct continuation of the old paganism. Further proof that Mary-worship is but the outgrowth of the old popular worship of the Pagan Mother Goddess, may be seen in the TITLES that are ascribed to her. Let us notice how the pagan titles by which the Mother Goddess was known were smoothly transferred to Mary, and much of the old worship continued! For example, Mary is often called THE MADONNA. But such a title had absolutely nothing to do with Mary, the mother of Jesus! Instead, this expression is the translation of one of the titles by which the Babylonian Goddess was known! In deified 1 The Golden Bough, Volume 1, p Volume 14, p Fausset s Bible Encyclopedia, p. 484

5 Comparative Religions Page 5 form, Nimrod came to be known as Baal. The title of his wife, the female divinity, would be the equivalent of Baalti. In English, this word mean My Lady ; in Latin, Mea Domina, and in Italian, it is corrupted into the well-known Madonna! 1 Among Phoenicians, the Mother Goddess was known as The Lady of the Sea 2 and even this title is applied to Mary though there is no connection between Mary and the sea whatsoever! The scriptures make it plain that there is ONE mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:5). Yet Roman Catholicism teaches that Mary is also a mediator. And therefore, prayers to her form a very important part of Catholic worship. But how was it that Mary came to be looked upon as a mediator? Again the influence of paganism is obvious. You see, the Mother Goddess of Babylon bore as one of her names, Mylitta, that is, The Mediatrix. And so this too passed into the apostate church which to this day speaks of Mary as the Mediatrix or Mediator! Another title that was borrowed from paganism and applied to Mary is the queen of heaven. But Mary, the mother of Jesus, is not the queen of heaven, for the queen of heaven was a title of the pagan Mother-goddess that was worshipped centuries before Mary was ever born! Yes, way back in the days of Jeremiah, the people were worshipping the Queen of Heaven and practicing rites that were sacred to her. As we read in Jeremiah 7:18-20: The children gather wood, and the fathers kindle the fire, and the women knead their dough, to make cakes to the queen of heaven. And in this connection, it is interesting to note that right down to modern times at Paphos, in Cyprus, the women made offerings to the Virgin Mary as Queen of heaven, in the ruins of the ancient Temple of Astarte. 3 As we have seen, the name of the Mother-goddess in Egypt was Isis and her son s name was Horus. Now one of the titles by which Isis was known was the Mother of God. Later this same title was applied to Mary by the theologians of Alexandria. 4 This again was obviously an attempt to make Christianity appear similar to the ancient paganism with its Mother-goddess worship. Now we know that Mary was the mother of Jesus, but only in the sense of his human nature, his humanity. The Catholic title and the original meaning of the title, however, went beyond this. It attached a glorified position to the MOTHER and in much the same way, Roman Catholics are taught to think of Mary today! The worship of Isis, the Egyptian form of the Babylonian Mother Goddess, was not limited to Egypt. It was introduced into Rome about 80 BC when Sulla founded an Isiac college there. And to show to what extent that paganism was mixed with Christianity at Rome, we need only to mention the fact that Isis, the pagan Mother of God, was worshipped in a shrine that stood on the Vatican Hill where now stands St. Peter s, the center of the church which worships the Mother of God in just that capacity! 5 And so the titles queen of heaven, Lady of the Sea, Mediatrix, Madonna, Mother of God, and others all of which were the titles of the pagan Mother-Goddess were, little by little, applied to Mary. Such titles plainly show that the SUPPOSED worship of Mary today is in reality the continuation of the Goddess worship of pagan times. But there is further proof of this that can be seen in the way that Mary came to be represented in the art of the fallen church: So firmly written in the paganistic mind was image of the Mother Goddess with child in her arms, that when the days of the great falling away came, the ancient portrait of Isis and the child Horus was ultimately accepted not only in popular opinion, but by formal episcopal sanction, as the portrait of the Virgin and her child. 6 Representations of Isis and her child were often enclosed in a framework of flowers. This practice too was applied to Mary who is often pictured the same way, as those who have studied Medieval Art well know. The Egyptian goddess Isis was often represented as standing on the Crescent moon with twelve stars surrounding her head. 7 Even this was adopted and applied to Mary, for in almost every Roman Catholic church on the continent of Europe may be seen pictures of Mary exactly the same way! To satisfy the superstitious minds of the heathen, leaders of the falling away attempted to make Mary appear similar to the goddess of paganism and exalt her to a divine plane to compete with the pagan Mother. And even as the pagans had statues of the Goddess, so likewise, statues were made of Mary even though the scriptures forbid such a practice! In some cases, the VERY SAME statues that had been worshipped as Isis (with her child), were simply renamed as Mary and the Christ child and the old worship continued! When Christianity triumphed, says one writer, these paintings and figures became those of the Madonna and child without any break in continuity: No archaeologist, in fact, can now tell whether some of these objects represent the one or the other. 8 All of this shows how far apostate leaders went in their attempt to merge paganism with Christianity. Many of these renamed figures are crowned and adorned with jewels in exactly the same way as the images of the Hindoo and Egyptian Virgins. Now Mary, the mother of Jesus was not rich, put poor. From where then came the jewels and the crowns seen on these statues that are supposedly of her? Obviously such representations are not Christian, but are of a pre-christian origin instead! And so by compromises some very obvious, others more hidden the worship of the ancient Mother of the pagans was continued within the church, the church of the falling away, with the name of Mary being substituted in place of the old names. And this slight change has deceived the world! 1 Two Babylons, p.20 2 Harper s Bible Dictionary, p The Paganism in Our Christianity, p Ibid, p Ibid, p Man and His Gods, p Kenrick s Egypt, volume 1, p. 425; Isis Unveiled, p The Paganism in Our Christianity, p. 129

6 Comparative Religions Page 6 CHAPTER THREE Mary Worship Perhaps the most outstanding proof that Mary worship is a continuation of the old pagan worship (and not of Mary at all) may be seen from the fact that in pagan religion, the MOTHER was worshipped as much or more than her son! Here then is an outstanding clue to help us solve the Mystery of Babylon today! True Christianity teaches that the Lord Jesus and HE alone is the way, the truth, and the life; that only HE can forgive sin; and only HE, of all earth s creatures, has ever lived a life that was never stained with wrong; and HE is to be worshipped NEVER HIS MOTHER. But Roman Catholicism showing the influence that paganism has had in its development exalts the MOTHER also! In fact, in many ways the Mother is exalted more than the Son. Of course, some might try to deny that the Catholic church attributes such a divine position to Mary. But one can travel the world over, and whether in a massive Cathedral or in a village chapel, the statue of Mary will occupy the most prominent position. In reciting the Rosary prayers, the Hail Mary is repeated nine times as often as the Lord s prayer. Say what one will, Mary is the most important name in Catholicism. In a very similar way as the ancient Babylonians glorified their Mother-goddess, so do those in Modern Babylon today only they use the name Mary instead of the former names by which the goddess was known. Catholics are taught that the reason for praying to Mary is that she can take the petition to her Son, Jesus; and since she is his MOTHER, he will answer the request for her sake. The inference is that Mary is more compassionate, understanding, and merciful than her son, the Lord Jesus. Certainly such a position is blasphemous and utterly contrary to the scriptures! Yet this idea is often repeated in Catholic writings. One noted Roman Catholic writer, Alphonsus Ligruori, wrote at length telling how much more effectual prayers are that are addressed to Mary rather than to Christ. And that his writings carried Catholic approval is evident from the fact that he was canonized as a saint by Pope Gregory XIV in 1839 and declared a doctor of the Catholic church by Pope Pius IX. In one portion of his writings Ligouri describes an imaginary scene in which a sinful man sees two ladders hanging from heaven. Mary is at the top of one; Jesus at the top of the other. When the sinner tries to climb the one ladder, he sees the angry face of Christ and falls defeated. But when he climbs Mary s ladder, he ascends easily and is openly welcomed by Mary who brings him into heaven and presents him to Christ! Then all is well. The story is supposed to show how much easier and more effective it is to go to Christ through Mary. 1 This same Catholic writer said that the sinner who ventures to come directly to Christ may come with dread of his wrath. But if he will pray to the Virgin, she will only have to show that son the breasts that gave him suck and his wrath will be immediately appeased! 2 Certainly such a heathenistic idea is contrary to the scriptures. In fact, the scriptures give us an illustration that fully refutes such a position: Blessed is the womb that bare thee, a woman once said to Jesus, and the paps that thou hast sucked! But Jesus answered, Yea, rather blessed are they that hear the word of God and keep it (Luke 11:27, 28). Obviously then the idea that Jesus would be persuaded to answer a prayer because of Mary shows him the breasts that he had sucked, is contrary to the scriptures. But such ideas about the breasts, on the other hand, were not foreign to the worshippers of the pagan Mother-goddess. Idols of the Goddess have been unearthed which often show her breasts extremely out of proportion to her body. Or, as in the case of Diana, to symbolize her fertility, she is pictured with as many as one hundred breasts! Catholicism has further attempted to exalt Mary to a glorified position as evidenced by the doctrine of the Immaculate conception. Now such a teaching, it should seem, is only a further effort to make Mary more closely resemble the Goddess of paganism, for in the old myths, the goddess was also believed to have had a supernatural conception! These old fable stories varied, but all told of supernatural happenings in connection with her entrance into the world. They taught that she was superior to ordinary mortals; that she was divine. And so, little by little, to make the teachings about Mary harmonize with the pagan teachings, it was necessary to teach that Mary s entrance into this world was supernatural also! The supernatural element in the Roman Catholic teaching about Mary is that she was born without the stain of original sin. But of such a birth the scriptures are silent. Concerning Mary, the Bible does say that she was a chosen vessel of the Lord; she was a Godly and virtuous woman a virgin but she was as much a HUMAN as you or I. And as a human, she was a member of Adam s family a fallen family. As the scriptures declare, ALL have sinned and come short of the glory of God, and the only exception to this is the Lord Jesus himself. Like everyone else, Mary needed a savior! And this she plainly admitted when she said: And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my SAVIOR (Luke 1:47). Obviously if Mary needed a savior, then she was not a savior herself. If she needed a savior, then she needed to be saved, forgiven, and redeemed even as others. The fact is: Our Lord s divinity did not depend on his Mother being some type of exalted, super-human person. No; instead he was divine because he was the only begotten Son of God. His divinity came from his Heavenly Father. Let us understand that it was JESUS that was born of a supernatural conception, not his mother! The idea that Mary was superior to other human beings was utterly refuted by Jesus Himself! One day while he was preaching, his mother and his brethren stood without, desiring to speak with him. Then someone said, Behold thy mother and thy brethren stand without, desiring to 1 Roman Catholicism, p Two Babylons, p. 158

7 Comparative Religions Page 7 speak with thee. But Jesus answered: Who is my mother? And who are my brethren? And stretching forth his hand toward his disciples, he said: Behold my mother and my brethren! For WHOSOEVER shall do the will of my Father which is in heaven, the same is my brother, and sister, and MOTHER (Matthew 12:46-50). Plainly enough then, if we serve the Lord if we do his will then we are on the same level with Mary or any other Christian. Certainly this oneness in Christ shows an EQUALITY in the sight of God and refutes the idea that Mary was a super-human person. However, Romanism had adopted from paganism the idea of praying to the Divine Mother and so it had to teach that Mary was a superhuman person how else could she hear so many prayers as those that are addressed to her? Each day Catholics the world over recite the Hail Mary, the Rosary, the Angelus, the Litanies of the Blessed Virgin, and others. Multiplying the number of these prayers, times the number of Catholics that recite these prayers each day, it has been figured that Mary would have to listen to 46,296 petitions a second and this is a conservative estimate! Obviously, no one could do this but God himself. Nevertheless Catholics believe that Mary hears all of these prayers; and so of necessity, they have had to exalt her to the Divine level scriptural or not! Attempting to justify such undue exaltation of Mary, Catholic leaders have sought for a scriptural basis for the belief. The words of Gabriel to Mary, Blessed art thou among women (Luke 1:28) have often been referred to in this connection. Now most assuredly the words of Gabriel indicate that Mary was chosen of the Lord. But simply because she was blessed among women would not make her a divine person, for 1300 years before, a similar blessing was pronounced upon Jael, of whom it was said Blessed above women shall Jael the wife of Heber the Kenite be... (Judges 5:24). It seems quite evident then that the words which tell us Mary was blessed among women do not prove that we should worship her, pray to her, or think of her as a goddess. Before Pentecost, Mary was gathered with the other disciples waiting for the promise of the Holy Spirit. We read that the apostles all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and MARY the mother of Jesus, and his brethren (Acts 1:14). Certainly the scriptures do not say that the disciples were praying to Mary, were worshipping her, or that she even took any prominent position. But typical of Catholic ideas concerning Mary, the accompanying illustration (as seen in the Catholic Catechism books) attempts to give to Mary a central position. 1 But as all students of the Bible know, the disciples were not looking to Mary on that occasion, they were looking to their resurrected and ascended CHRIST to outpour on them the gift of the Holy Spirit! We notice that in the drawing that not only are the disciples pictured as looking to Mary, but even the Holy Spirit (as a dove) is seen hovering over her! However, as far as the scriptural account is concerned, the only one upon whom the Spirit in this form ever descended was Jesus Himself not his mother! On the other hand and this sounds almost incredible but the pagan Virgin Goddess under the name of Juno was often represented with a dove on her head, as was also Astarte, Cybele, and Isis! 2 And so the pagan influence in such pictures seems apparent. Further attempts to glorify Mary to exalt her to a position the scriptures no where assign to her may be seen in the Catholic doctrine known as the PERPETUAL VIRGINITY of Mary. This is the teaching that Mary remained a virgin throughout her life. But never was this doctrine taught by Christ or the Apostles. As the ENCYCLOPEDIA BRITANNICA explains, the doctrine of the perpetual virginity of Mary was not taught until about three hundred years AFTER our Lord s return to heaven! It was not until the meetings of the Council of Chalcedon in 451 that this fabulous quality gained the official recognition of Rome. 3 Quite contrary to Catholic teachings, however, the scriptures plainly show that Mary did NOT remain a virgin throughout her life. The scriptures teach that our Lord Jesus was born to the virgin Mary virgin born supernaturally born (Matthew 1:23). We most assuredly believe in the virgin birth of Christ! But, after Jesus was born, Mary gave birth to other children the natural offspring of her union with Joseph, her husband: In Matthew 1:25, we read that Jesus was Mary s FIRSTBORN son. The Bible does not say that Mary brought forth her ONLY child; it says, instead, that Jesus was her firstborn child. Now the fact that Jesus was her firstborn child, would certainly infer that she later had a second-born child, possibly a third-born child, etc. But beyond this line of reasoning, the scriptures leave no room for doubt as to the fact that Mary did have other children after Jesus was born. Their names are listed in the Bible as follows: James, Joses, Simon, and Judas (Matthew 13:55). Besides these four brothers, the passage goes on to mention the sisters of Jesus. The people of Nazareth said: And his sisters, are they not all with us? (verse 56). The word sisters is in the plural, so we know that Jesus had at least two sisters. But a still closer look at the passage indicates that Jesus not only had two sisters, but at least three or more! Notice that the verse speaks of all his sisters. Usually if we are referring to only two people, we would say both of them, not all of them. That the expression refers to at least three sisters is definitely implied. If we then figure three sisters and four brothers, half-brothers and half-sisters to Jesus, this would make Mary the mother of eight children all together. The Lord Jesus was born to Mary supernaturally born of virgin birth. The remaining seven children that were born to her were born by natural birth, children that Mary conceived from her husband Joseph. But the Catholic position is that Joseph kept Mary as a virgin all of their married life. However, she remained a virgin according to scripture only until after Jesus was born. Joseph... knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and He called his name JESUS (Matthew 1:25). Joseph knew her not until after Jesus was born, but after that, Mary and Joseph did come together as husband and wife and children were born to them as we have seen. Considering then how the scriptures plainly teach these things, is not the doctrine of the perpetual virginity of Mary utterly erroneous? 1 Official Baltimore Catechism, Number 2 (Lesson 11) 2 Doane, p Volume 14, p. 999

8 Comparative Religions Page 8 During the times of the great falling away, to more closely identify Mary with the Mother Goddess that the nations had been worshipping for centuries, men also began to teach that Mary s body never saw corruption, that she bodily ascended into heaven, and that she is there today as the queen of heaven, to receive worship and prayers! It was not until this present century, however, that the doctrine of the Assumption of Mary was officially proclaimed as a doctrine of the Roman Catholic church. It was in 1951 that Pope Pius XII proclaimed that Mary s body saw no corruption, but was taken to heaven. Obviously then, the doctrine of the Assumption of the Virgin was not a part of New Testament doctrine. The following words of St. Bernard sum up the Catholic position in this connection: On the third day after Mary s death, when the apostles gathered around her tomb, they found it empty. The sacred body had been carried up to the Celestial Paradise... the grave had no power over one who was immaculate... But it was not enough that Mary should be received into heaven. She was to be no ordinary citizen... she had a dignity beyond the reach even of the highest of the archangels. Mary was to be crowned Queen of Heaven by the eternal Father: she was to have a throne at her Son s right hand... Now day by day, hour by hour, she is praying for us, obtaining graces for us, preserving us from danger, shielding us from temptation, showering down blessing upon us... Now the worship of Mary in its entirety is based upon this belief that she bodily ascended into heaven. But the Bible says absolutely nothing about the so-called Assumption of Mary. On the other hand, John 3:13 says: No man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven -- our Lord Jesus Christ. HE is the one that is at God s right hand, HE is the one that is our mediator, HE is the one that showers down blessings upon us not his mother! The Bible nowhere tells us to pray to a woman Mary or anyone else. Such false worship is repeatedly forbidden in the Bible. True prayers must be addressed to our Lord himself. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus (I Timothy 2:5). The very idea of praying to Mary as a mediator, as the queen of heaven, is but paganism disguised with the name Mary. Closely connected with the prayers that are prayed to Mary is the Rosary, which, as we shall see is equally pagan in origin: As an instrument, the rosary is a chain with fifteen sets of small beads, each set marked off by one large bead. The ends of this chain are joined by a medal bearing the imprint of Mary. From this hangs a short chain at the end of which is a crucifix, a cross with a dead savior hanging on it. The beads on the rosary are for counting prayers, prayers that are repeated over and over. Such an instrument, as is well known, is a very important part of Catholic worship. But like so many things in the Catholic Church, the rosary is not a Christian instrument, but a pagan invention. Long before there ever was a Catholic church, the rosary was in common use in almost every pagan nation! A medal has been found at Citium, in Cyprus, colonized by the Phoenicians, which bears a circle of beads resembling a rosary. This rosary was used in the worship of Astarte, the Mother Goddess, about 800 BC! 1 This same rosary is seen on some of the early Phoenician coins. The Brahmans have from early times used rosaries with tens and hundreds of beads. The worshippers of Vishnu give their children rosaries of 108 beads. A similar rosary is used by millions of Buddhists in India and Tibet. 2 The Moslem constantly fingers the Tasbih rosary with 99 beads for the 99 names of Allah. 3 The worshippers of Siva has a rosary upon which he rehearses, if possible, all the 1008 names of his god. 4 When Catholic missionaries first visited India, Japan, and Mexico places that had never heard of Christ they were shocked to find rosaries already in use by pagans! The demon worshipers of Thibet and China use rosaries in their rituals. Rosaries are often mentioned in the sacred books of the Hindoos. 5 The rosary was used in Asiatic Greece and such was the purpose (according to Hislop) of the beads that are seen on the statue of Diana. 6 Literature of the second and third centuries BEFORE the Christian era, mentions the use of rosaries among various heathen religions. And not only was the rosary in evidence in all these countries and among these religions that we have mentioned, necklaces worn by the women were not merely for ornamental reasons but for the REMEMBRANCE of prayers in their heathenistic religion the word necklace, Monile, meaning Remembrancer. 7 That the rosary instrument was used in pre-christian times and by non-christian religions none can deny. Even the CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA says: In almost all countries, then, we meet with something in the nature of prayer counters or rosary-beads. However, neither Christ or the Apostles ever taught us to use an instrument to count our prayers! Memorizing a prayer, then repeating it over and over, while we count rosary beads, actually becomes more of a memory test than a spontaneous expression of prayer from the heart. Considering that its use is without scriptural support and that its origin was among heathen tribes, the rosary is but another example of how paganism was mixed into the Catholic religion. 1 The Cross in Tradition, History, and Art, p Encyclopedia of Religions, Volume 3, p Ibid, p Ibid, p Doane, p Two Babylons, p Ibid, p. 188

9 Comparative Religions Page 9 The most oft-repeated prayer and the main prayer of the rosary is the Hail Mary which is as follows: Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee; Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of death, Amen. In all, reciting the complete rosary takes about 15 minutes. It involves repeating the Hail Mary 53 times, the Lord s Prayer 6 times, 5 mysteries, 5 meditations on the Mysteries, 5 glory Be s and one repeating of the Apostles Creed (so called). Now let us notice where the emphasis is placed. Which prayer is repeated the most? It is the prayer to Mary! In fact, the Hail Mary prayer is repeated almost NINE TIMES as often as the Lord s Prayer. But we ask: is a prayer composed by men and directed to Mary nine times as important or effective as the prayer taught by Jesus and directed to God himself? Such an extreme emphasis on the MOTHER again plainly shows the mixture of paganism into the system of Rome! Repeating a prayer over and over is shown in the Bible to be a practice of the heathen! For example, repetitious prayers were used in connection with Diana worship at Ephesus. These prayers consisted of a short religious phrase repeated over and over, as we read in Acts 19:34. In this passage, the worshippers of the Mother Goddess all with one voice about the space of two hours cried out, Great is Diana of the Ephesians. They kept saying this over and over. And even as those worshippers of Diana used repetitious phrases in their worship, even so today, the same type of unscriptural praying continues in the Catholic church now supposedly to Mary! But Jesus Christ was directly opposed to the practice of repeating a prayer over and over and plainly said so! When ye pray, he declared use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do; for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of before ye ask him (Matthew 6:7-13). In this passage, our Lord in no uncertain terms told us NOT to pray a little prayer over and over. Jesus said it was heathenistic. Will we believe Him and will we obey? Of all the rosary prayers, the only one that is taken directly from the Bible is The Lord s Prayer. But even this prayer was not to be repeated over and over, for after the Lord told us not to use repetitions as the heathen do, in the very next verse, he said: After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven... and he gave the disciples this sample prayer. In the very same passage in which he warned of vain repetition, the Lord Jesus gave this prayer as an OPPOSITE to the heathen type of prayer. And yet, in direct disobedience to the scriptures, Catholics are taught to repeat this prayer over and over. And if even the Lord s Prayer was not to be repeated over and over, how much less should we repeat over and over a little man-made prayer to Mary, his human mother? CHAPTER FOUR Saints, Saints Days, and Symbols In addition to the prayers and devotions that are directed to Mary, Roman Catholics also honor and pray to various saints. Now these saints according to the Catholic position are martyrs or other notable people of the church who have died and whom the Popes have pronounced saints. In this chapter we shall see the astounding proof, however, that the idea of praying to saints was but a continuation of the old devotion that the pagans gave to the gods and goddesses of their religion from the earliest times! But before we notice this evidence, let us first look into the Holy Scriptures and see what the Bible teaches concerning saints. According to the Bible, ALL true Christians are saints! There is certainly no indication that a person becomes a saint after he is dead. And it is not a pope that makes anyone a saint. This is God s business! In the scriptures, saints are living people, never the dead. For example, when Paul wrote to the Ephesians, his letter was addressed: To the saints that are at Ephesus (Ephesians 1:1). The book of Philippians was written to all the saints that are at Philippi (Philippians 1:1). The early Christians in the church at Rome were called saints (Romans 1:7; 16:15) as were also those Christians who lived at Corinth (I Corinthians 1:2; II Corinthians 1:1). Therefore, if we want a saint to pray for us, we should find a Christian and let him join us in prayer. But if we try to contact people that have died, what else could it be but a form of spiritism? Repeatedly the Bible condemns all attempts to commune with the dead, for such is actually demonism (see Isaiah 8:18, 20). Yet many recite the Apostles Creed that says: We believe... in the communion of saints and believe that such has reference not only to the living, but to the departed as well a mutual sharing in help, satisfaction, prayer, and other good works, a mutual communication (New Catholic Encyclopedia, Volume 4, p. 41.) But the scriptures are against the idea of the living being blessed or benefited by prayers to or through those who have already died. Such teachings are completely foreign to the Bible. How then did these things enter into the Romish Church? Again we look back to the Mother of false religion Babylon. Here, from the earliest times we find that the people prayed to and honored a plurality of goods. In fact, the Babylonian system developed until it had some 5000 gods and goddesses. 1 And in much the same way as Catholics believe about their saints, the Babylonians believed that their gods and goddesses had at one time been living heroes on earth, but were now on a higher plane. 2 Every month and every day of the month was under the 1 In the Beginnings, p Encyclopedia of Religions, Volume 2, p. 78